


Tangerine

by walking_travesty



Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Baked Goods, Fluff, Harry just bakes for fun, Kinda, M/M, Strangers to Lovers, Zayn is an editor if that matters, but it's cute i promise, it's ridiculous tbh, still don't know how to tag, this fic is kinda boring sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-29
Updated: 2016-12-29
Packaged: 2018-09-13 04:32:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9106738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/walking_travesty/pseuds/walking_travesty
Summary: “So...someone’s just leaving you...food?” Niall asks one day, frowning down at the loaf of bread sitting on Zayn’s coffee table. Zayn shrugs, smiling shyly.“Apparently yeah.”“What the hell, no one did that for me when I moved in!” Niall groans--Zayn moves to a new place and begins receiving curious little goods on his door step.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for the I Used To Be A Baker Ficfest so I hope you guys enjoy this little fic of mine! 
> 
> Title is from the Led Zeppelin song of the same name!

“Horan, if you drop that box, I swear -” 

“Relax, Zee. I got this.” Niall interrupts, giving Zayn a wink as he passes by him. He manages to get the box up the next flight of stairs before he groans, eventually putting it down again. Zayn rolls his eyes, hoisting the box he was carrying further under his arm as he continues to climb the stairs. He gives Niall a warning look, raising his eyebrow at the blonde. 

“I told you it was heavy,” Zayn sing-songs, sticking out his tongue as he passes Niall up the stairs. Niall laughs anyway, huffing out a breath. 

“Why are these plates so heavy? Can’t you just get paper ones like a normal young adult?” Niall whines. Zayn peaks over the railing back down at Niall, rolling his eyes again. 

“Because I’m not lazy like _some_ people and I care about the earth.” Zayn calls back, continuing his walk. 

They eventually both make it to Zayn’s new apartment, both boys out of breath and nearly close to passing out. Niall all but collapses onto Zayn’s couch, the plastic from storage still wrapped around it. 

“Why did you have to move in on the _one_ day the elevator is broken?” Niall complains, throwing an arm across his forehead. Zayn is still too out of breath to reply, so he settles on flipping Niall off. He eventually finds his composure, moving past Niall and carrying a box into the kitchen. 

“Do you think I had control over that? Why does your building have a broken elevator?” Zayn throws back, cutting through the tape on top of the box. He groans pitifully once he sees a chipped plate, “Ni, I told you to be careful with these!” Niall does nothing but shrug, putting his feet on top of Zayn’s coffee table. 

“I told you to hire movers, Zee.” Niall calls back, pulling out his phone. Zayn walks back into the room, flicking Niall on the forehead before sitting down beside him. Niall pecks him on the cheek and that pretty much ends the argument. Zayn puts his head on Niall’s shoulder, sighing to himself. 

“I can’t believe I’m finally living on my own,” Zayn comments, his body suddenly feeling incredibly exhausted. Niall makes a noise in response, nudging Zayn until he can wrap his arm around his shoulders. 

“I’m proud of you, Zee,” Niall says, turning towards him, “Your roommates were dicks anyway.” Zayn hits him on the thigh when he says it. Niall wasn’t necessarily wrong, though. 

In all seriousness, Zayn fucking hated his roommates. He dreaded coming home from work everyday knowing that they would be there. In hindsight, Zayn should’ve known that living with three other boys would be a nightmare, but the rent was cheap and he was desperate to move out of his parent’s house after graduating uni. 

But now that he thinks about it, his parents were definitely better roommates. 

“They weren’t all bad,” Zayn tries to reason, though he doesn’t quite believe the words himself. Niall snorts, rolling his eyes. 

“That’s because you don’t like seeing the bad in people, but luckily I can; they were all dickheads. If you weren’t there to pick up after everyone, you would’ve been living in an actual bin.” Niall huffs, crinkling his nose at the memories. Niall did have a point there. Zayn sits up, yawning before he gets up to unpack the rest of his stuff. 

“At least I only have to pick up after you now,” Zayn sighs airily, snorting out a laugh when Niall throws a handful of packing peanuts at him. 

= 

The two boys end up getting most of Zayn’s place unpacked by the time Niall says his goodbyes. Zayn pulls Niall into a hug, his arms barely being able to wrap around him; he was so tired. Niall wraps his arms around Zayn’s waist, giving his hip a gentle pat before he lets go. 

“Thanks for helping me move, Ni,” Zayn says cheerfully, despite how worn out he feels. Niall shrugs his shoulders, giving him an easy grin. 

“It was no problem, Zee.” He replies, walking towards the door. He opens it, turning to give Zayn one last look, “I’m just on the next floor up, you’ll call me if you need anything, yeah?” Zayn rolls his eyes, glaring at the blonde. 

“I’m not a child, I know how to take care of myself,” Zayn huffs, though he does appreciate the gesture. Niall laughs in reply, stepping out into the hallway, “Are you sure you can’t stay?” 

Niall turns to look at him, shaking his head ,“Li and I have date night,” he says, shrugging his shoulders apologetically, “You’re welcome to -” 

 

“No thanks,” Zayn says, scrunching up his nose, “I love you both, but you two are gross together.” he laughs. Niall makes an exasperated noise, rolling his eyes. 

“Y’know, jealousy does not look good on you, mate,” Niall laughs in return, winking before he walks down the hall to the stairs. Once Zayn closes the door, he is acutely aware of how alone he is. He pouts at that, looking around his scarce flat; for a moment, he wondered if he made a mistake moving out on his own. He immediately shakes that idea out of his head, walking to the kitchen with determination to unpack the rest of his things. 

= 

A few hours later, Zayn is sitting at his newly put together dining table with a microwave meal. He looks at the meal with minor disgust, making a mental note to go to the store as soon as humanly possible. He looks around his apartment, the silence almost too much to bear. He looks down at his food again with a frown; this was not how he pictured his first night in. He sighs, picking up his fork and giving his food an experimental jab. His stomach turns at the way it all but gushes out an mysterious brown substance. 

“That’s horrid,” He says under his breath, his voice sounding too loud in his own ears. He gets up from the table, happily walking over to the bin to throw the food away. Once he puts his plate into the sink, he walks over to the couch and plops down. He gets comfortable, looking for the remote to the TV until he realizes it isn’t hooked up to anything yet. Zayn frowns deeply again, his heart sinking when he remembers that he won’t have cable or internet until the next day. 

“Bollocks,” He gruffs lowly. He lies his head on the back of the couch, his eyes staring up at the blank, white ceiling. 

“Happy first night in,” He says out loud, his mouth twisting in a sardonic smile. 

Then, there’s a knock on the door. 

Zayn frowns, his eyes shifting towards the door. He hears a couple a footsteps, and then nothing. With a sigh, he stands up from the couch. He looks through the peephole, making sure that no one was still out there. When he sees that the hallway is empty, he gets a little paranoid. He looks down at his lock, making sure that it was properly latched, his heart beat rising a little. He sighs, his hand reaching for the lock. He looks through his peephole one last time before he gets the courage to unlock his door. He opens it slowly, peering through the crack of the door. He doesn’t see anyone, opening it further until he can peer out into the hallway. 

“Fuckin’ twats,” Zayn mumbles bitterly, frowning until he notices something on his door step. 

A loaf of bread. 

Zayn creases his brow, looking at the curious little baked good on his door step; wondering exactly why it was there. He looked down at it, trying to decide on whether he should pick it up or not. For all he knew, it could be laced with rat poison. He sighs again, shrugging to himself. He leans down and picks up the bread, smiling to himself when he feels that it’s still warm. He looks back up, looking up and down the hallway before he ducks back into his flat. He locks the door again, looking down at the freshly made loaf of bread in his hand. 

“What the hell…?” He says under his breath, walking over to the kitchen. He sets it down on the dining table, unwrapping it slowly. When he gets the plastic off, he puts the bread down on a plate (it was one of the fancy ones his mum got him; a white serving plate with pretty little flowers along the edge of it). He immediately starts to consider it again - what were the chances of him dying? 

The bread seemed to be alright, the color golden brown and the smell incredibly delicious. His stomach starts to growl the longer he stares at it, his mouth watering to get a piece. He finally gives in, searching almost frantically for a knife. He cuts the end off of the loaf, licking his lips until he cuts a decent slice of bread. He inspects it further before ultimately shoving it in his mouth. 

It was delicious. 

He closes his eyes, trying to savor every bite he took. He looks down at the loaf, deciding that if it were poisoned, he wouldn’t be too mad about it considering how delicious it tastes. He cuts off another piece, eating small bites until he just decides to grab the whole loaf and sit on the couch with it. He reads over a few manuscripts from work, happily chewing on morsels of bread for the rest of the night. 

Whoever dropped this off for him was an absolute saint. 

= 

A few days later, there is another knock on his door. 

Zayn nearly jumps out of his skin at the sudden noise. He looks behind him, his hands resting on the counter top. He was in the middle of cooking his first homemade meal in the new flat. After ordering food for the last two days, he figured it was time he finally started acting like an adult and cook his own food. 

It wasn’t going very well. 

He had nicked his thumb twice with a knife, burned his hand on the handle of a sauce pan, and nearly burned his entire flat down by leaving a paper towel on one of the burners on his stove top.

He puts down his knife, making sure that everything was in order in the kitchen before he ventured into the living room. He wipes his hands down the front of his apron (it was a sort of housewarming gift that Niall gave him; it said ‘The hottest thing in this kitchen is me’ and Zayn will not admit to anyone how much he loved it) and looking through the peephole. He doesn’t see anything besides the blank grey door of the flat across from him. He is a little less concerned when he unlocks the door this time, thinking back to the mysterious (but mostly delicious) loaf of bread left on his door step the last time. He smiles when he realizes that it’s another baked good. He bends down to pick up the container, looking down boths ends of the hallway before closing the door. He leans against it and smiles even more when he opens the lid to the container. 

“Fucking pastries?” He says out loud, his stomach already growling at just the thought of eating one. They were perfectly presented and they smelled so heavenly that he couldn’t resist not eating one any longer. He sits down on his couch, picking up a strawberry jam filled tart and happily taking a bite of it. 

“Unbelievable,” He groans under his breath, smiling as he takes another bite. He is so wrapped up in the pastries, that he forgets that he’s cooking chicken until he smells something burning. He jumps up, taking one last bite of the tart before dashing towards the kitchen to save what remnants of a dinner he had left. 

= 

“So...someone’s just leaving you...food?” Niall asks one day, frowning down at the loaf of bread sitting on Zayn’s coffee table. Zayn shrugs, smiling shyly. 

“Apparently yeah.” 

“What the hell, no one did that for me when I moved in!” Niall groans, pouting at Zayn. Zayn rolls his eyes, his hand reaching out to mess up Niall’s hair. Niall lies back on the couch, still pouting. 

“Maybe because I’m more likeable than you?” Zayn suggests, a sly grin forming on his lips. Niall makes an indignant noise at that, shaking his head. 

“That’s impossible, you never leave your room to be likeable.” 

“Hey!” 

Niall laughs, his lips pulled up into a smile; eyes crinkling at the corners, “What? It’s the truth!” He laughs again when Zayn lunges for him, wrapping his arms around Niall’s head until he has him in a headlock. Zayn huffs out a laugh, grinning widely once Niall pushes him away, “You’re definitely not likeable after that.” 

= 

Zayn is furious. He practically punches the button for his floor on the elevator, his foot tapping relentlessly on the ground; he had the most irritating day at work. 

It started when the new intern, Perrie, nicked his car getting into the parking spot next to him, followed by the pile of manuscripts he found sitting on his desk; each story more painfully awful than the one before. Zayn reached his tipping point when another intern, an hour later, spilled coffee all over his desk. 

Today was not his day. 

When he gets off of the elevator, he all but stomps his way to his apartment. He fumbles with his keys, his hands shaking with unreleased fury. Once he gets inside, he presses his back against the door, aching for a cigarette. 

 

He unwinds a little bit once he’s perched on the window sill in his bedroom, his window cracked as he exhales a breath of smoke. He felt a little guilty, remembering the promise he made to Niall about quitting. He shrugs the thought away, hoping that Niall would understand why he needed it. He closes his eyes, the nicotine making the muscles in his shoulders loosen. After he finishes his cigarette, throwing the remnants of it out of the window, he lies down on his bed; face up and staring blankly at the ceiling. He began to close his eyes when he heard a knock on the door. He groans, not really looking forward to company. It takes a while, but he eventually rolls out of bed, dragging himself from his room. He looks through the peephole and sees no one, his mood brightening a little at the realization. 

He opens his door without a second thought, picking up the container. When he closes the door, he walks over to his couch, plopping down and opening the container. There were four cupcakes, all perfectly iced with tiny star sprinkles on top. 

Zayn was close to tears. 

He picks one up, smiling brightly when he sees that they’re red velvet. Before he takes a bite, he notices a piece of paper at the bottom on the container. He takes out the note with one hand, the other one occupied with a delicious looking cupcake. 

_Hope this makes your day brighter!_

_(p.s. There’s cream cheese in the centre :D) x_

 

A warm feeling forms in his chest, making his stomach clench with it. He puts the note down, smiling as he takes a bite of the cupcake. 

= 

When Zayn gets home from work the next day, he decides to write a note back. 

He didn’t know what exactly to say, but he knew whatever it was, it had to be said. He puts down his things on the couch, pacing around his living room after. 

This was the first time he would communicate with this person. 

For the last two weeks since he’s moved in, this mystery baker has been leaving food at his doorstep and this is the first time he’s ever even thought about contacting them. Zayn shakes his head at that, finally sitting down on the couch. He takes out a pen and a piece of paper. 

_Thank you for the sweets yesterday, it really helped!_

_(p.s. The cupcakes were delicious)_

 

Zayn decides to go with that after staring down at the piece of paper for a solid five minutes. 

“I’m thinking way too much about this,” Zayn sighs, his stomach clenching for some unknown reason. He folds the paper in half, writing on the outside, To the mysterious baker, and puts it out on his doorstep before he can let himself think too deeply about what he just did. 

= 

Zayn is nervous the next day. 

He doesn’t know why, but when he enters his flat the next day, the overwhelming emotion of dread fills his veins; what if he crossed a line? What if they don’t respond? What if someone stole the letter? What if the baker got the letter and decided not to leave anything on his doorstep anymore? The last thought has him pouting. Zayn didn’t realize it until then, but the baker played a bigger part in his life than he had originally thought. He looked forward to coming home everyday to find a new baked good on his door step; the baker was the reason Zayn wasn’t starving and also hadn’t burned down his flat yet. 

He owed them a lot. 

He’s brought out of his thoughts when there’s a knock on the door. Zayn all but freezes. He shifts until he can look at the door, his mouth drying up. He waits until he hears footsteps receding down the hall until he finds the strength to get up from the couch. He feels ridiculous if he’s honest, but that didn’t stop his heart from dropping into his stomach when he opens the door. He picks up the jar he finds there before he can talk himself out of it. He closes the door, leaning back against it as he takes a closer look at the jar. It had what looked to be brownies in it and Zayn immediately smiled at that. His smile falters a bit when he notices the note attached to the side of the jar. 

 

_You’re welcome, I’m glad it helped!! I enjoy baking for you! :D  
Enjoy the fudge brownies x_

_\-- The mysterious baker_

 

If anyone asks, Zayn would not tell them how his heart skipped a beat. Zayn puts the jar of brownies down on the coffee, getting out a pen and paper for his next note. 

\--

It’s just apart of their routine now. 

Zayn has two things to look forward to when he gets home. Everyday for the past two weeks, there’s been little notes attached to every baked good he gets and Zayn can’t deny how happy he is about it. 

It started out with simple notes like, ‘the carrot cake is delicious!’, or, ‘I hope you have a lovely day too’ but then it spiraled into them sharing things about their lives. Zayn doesn’t know how he got a pen pal out of accepting baked goods, but all he knows is that he definitely isn’t mad about it. 

The baker was witty, smart, and incredibly sweet; talking about their mum and sister and how much they miss them. Zayn becomes more endeared by each message, his heart clenching every time. Zayn would be lying if he said he didn’t start to feel something for them. 

 

= 

Zayn had to meet them, the thought hits him quite abruptly.

For the past month, Zayn has been communicating back and forth with this person, happily eating whatever delicious treat they left at his door step; the thought of actually meeting them face to face never occured until now. 

He was terrified to say the least. 

The thought of finally putting a face and name to a person who’s been more or less a big part of his life made him sick to his stomach but also way more excited then he’d like to admit. He was excited of the idea of meeting this person, but what if it broke the spell? What if the anonymity of it all was the only reason Zayn even entertained the idea of fancying them? It was quite vain of him to think of, but what if he didn’t find them attractive? What if there was no spark? The idea of that makes his stomach turn; he didn’t want there to be any chance of the baker not being in his life anymore. For the past month, the baker has been the only positive thing in Zayn’s experience with living alone. It felt nice to feel like he had someone looking out for him. While he did enjoy Niall’s company and they would always be friends, this was a completely separate thing; they’ve bonded in a completely different way and Zayn wants to preserve that for as long as he can. With a sigh, Zayn drags himself from bed, his mind already coming up with a plan to catch the baker. 

 

 

The plan was simple, so, terribly simple. 

It bewildered Zayn how blind he was to the idea and how he never had thought of this sooner; all he had to do is wait at the door to see who comes by. 

When he gets back home from work later that day, he quickly puts away his things, planting himself to the door. He leans in, making sure to never let his eyes leave the peephole. The baker usually dropped off the treats a little bit after Zayn comes home from work. So if he’s correct, they should be here any minute. He jumps when he sees a few people walk past his door, his heart rate spiking whenever someone new passes by. After the fourth person, Zayn starts to get paranoid; maybe somehow the baker new of this plan and decided to come some later time? Zayn huffs at the idea, his palms of his hands sweating. 

After a few more minutes, a new person comes by, only this time, they stop directly in front of his door. Zayn stands completely still, his breathing shallow. The stranger is a tall man, the only thing that Zayn can see is the top of his shoulders. He holds a container in his hand, quickly settling it down on the ground. He knocks softly, his hand being the only thing Zayn can see before he retreats back down the hall. He follows him with his eyes, seeing that he walks back into the flat diagonal from him. Zayn shudders once he sees the door close. He ducts out of his flat quickly, picking up the container. He closes the door again seconds later, his forehead leaning against the door. He knew the baker was a boy and he knew where he lived now. 

He didn’t know if this was a good thing or not. 

He paces around his living room for a while, debating on whether to go confront him or not. He considers it; thinking of all the possible scenarios of what might happen. He would either a) welcome Zayn in with open arms or b) slam the door in his face and never talk to him again. 

Both were plausible and that didn’t make Zayn’s heart beat any slower. He turns to stare at his door, his fingers digging into the pockets of his jeans. He thinks of what he could possibly say to him, of what would come out of finally meeting him. It was a heavy feeling, but with a sigh, he unlocks the door. He gets it partially open before he stops again, his mind racing. 

“Fuck it,” Zayn says under his breath, practically dragging himself out of the flat. He closes the door, his heart beating in his throat. He walks the few steps over to the flat, his hands clenching into fists. He stops directly in front of it, not knowing if he could actually get the courage to knock or not. He stares at the door in vain, his hands unmoving. He feels creepy just standing in front of his door, but he couldn’t help it. He suddenly raises his hand, softly knocking the plain, grey door before he can tell himself not to. 

He hears footsteps. 

Zayn goes pale, his foot tapping anxiously on the ground. He hears the door unlock and he immediately freezes. 

“You’re here early, Lou, I-” The man stops when he sees Zayn, his eyes growing wide, “Oh.” Zayn can’t say anything in return, he’s only focused on the fact that this man was stunning. He had doe-like eyes that were a rich shade of green, he had curly, chestnut brown hair that reached his shoulders, and his lips were heart-shaped and pink and Zayn was not going to focus on them anymore before he did something that he would regret. The two boys stare at each other, almost like they couldn’t believe their eyes. 

Zayn clears his throat, his eyes casting downward at the ground, “Uh, hi,” He says lowly. He looks back up a second later, his heart clenching at what he sees. The man has a small, almost shy smile on his lips, his cheeks going a soft pink. 

“Hi.” 

They continue to stare at each other, though this time, the air surrounding them feels a lot lighter. Zayn smiles to himself, pushing his hands inside his pocket again. He looks at the man again, feeling quite ridiculous all of a sudden, “I’m Zayn.” The man leans against the door, a lazy smile forming on his lips. 

“I’m Harry. It’s...nice to meet you. Finally,” Harry says, laughing to himself lightly. 

“So...you’re the one who’s been...y’know -” 

“The weirdo who leaves baked goods at your door step? Yeah, that’d be me,” Harry laughs again, pushing himself off of the door. He stands to the side, gesturing towards Zayn, “Do you wanna’ come in?” Zayn nods once, his heart beating a mile a minute as he steps into the apartment. The flat is warm and inviting, the pleasant smell of cinnamon and apples making him feel at ease. Harry brushes past him in the hallway, the fleeting scent of citrus passing with him. Zayn doesn’t know what to do once he’s in the living room. There was one low sitting green couch in the center of the room, along with a few matching chairs. There was an ottoman, and a bookcase, but his eyes were immediately drawn to the piano sitting across the room. Zayn turns to Harry and blushes when he sees that he’s already staring at him. Harry gives him a shy smile, pointing to the couch, “You can sit down, if you’d like.” He says, his voice low and calming. He sits on chair next to it, pushing his hair from his face. Zayn sits down quietly next to him, his knee bouncing anxiously. They sit in silence for a few moments, Zayn being the first one to break it. 

“So, you’re the mysterious baker?” Zayn asks, wiggling an eyebrow. Harry laughs at that, shrugging his shoulders. 

“I used to be a baker,” Harry says a moment later, “before I moved here.” Zayn hums in thought, lying back on the couch. 

“I see you haven’t lost your edge,” Zayn says softly. Harry gives him a warm smile in return, “But why did you -” 

“It’s embarrassing,” Harry groans, pouting softly. Zayn snorts at that, leaning forward. 

“Well now you have to tell me,” Zayn laughs, giving Harry an encouraging smile. Harry looks at him once, sighing to himself. 

“I saw you move in that first day and I-,” Harry stops, avoiding eye contact, “I thought you were...attractive.” Zayn goes wide eye, a smile forming on his lips. 

“Go on.” 

Harry gives him a nervous look as he settles into his seat, “I just wanted to welcome you to the building. I wanted to introduce myself, but I was nervous, so, I just started leaving treats for you.” He says shrugging. Zayn laughs softly, his heart practically melting. 

“So you’ve been leaving food at my door for the past month because you think I’m cute?” Zayn asks, laughing again before he can stop himself. Harry shrugs his shoulders again, his cheeks a bright red. 

“Also because you’re really nice to talk to,” Harry says under his breath, his eyes looking anywhere but at Zayn. Zayn is absolutely beaming, a smile forming on his lips. 

“Well, that’s good.” Harry raises his head that the words, his brows furrowing. Zayn gives him a shy smile in return, his eyes focused down on his hands. 

“That’s...good?” 

Zayn nods softly, looking up at Harry, “It would be awkward to fancy someone who didn’t fancy you back, wouldn’t it?” He says, his voice surprisingly calm compared to the way his heart is beating against his chest. Harry’s eyes grow wide, a goofy grin forming on his lips.

“You like me?” 

“Yeah...do you like me?” 

Harry laughs at that, reaching over to grab Zayn’s hand. His hand was soft and firm, his fingers interlocking with Zayn’s without hesitancy, “Of course I do.” Zayn is speechless, his cheeks aching from how hard he’s smiling. 

“I mainly like you for the baked goods,” Zayn whispers as an after thought, smiling with satisfaction when Harry giggles. Harry leans in close, his breath fanning over Zayn’s cheek. He presses his lips to Zayn’s cheek lightly, smiling as he does so. 

“I have an apple pie in the kitchen,” Harry whispers seductively into Zayn’s ear. Zayn snorts at that, squeezing Harry’s hand. 

“You really know how to set the mood,” Zayn says in a breathy tone, laughing as Harry pulls him up from the couch and into the kitchen, their hands still clasped together. 

=

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> Feel free to leave a comment down below! Kudos are also very much appreciated! 
> 
> Tumblr: [1D Blog](http://www.angelic-lilo.tumblr.com) | [personal](http://www.blissless-oblivion.tumblr.com)


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